Quests 2015-2016

To kick off the school year, journalism travelled to Saint Bonaventure for their annual CommDay competition on Friday, October 16. This year, Squire students Alex Hagberg, Grant Venman, Allie Schutt, Kayla Kuppertz, Alisen Hazeltine, Amber Gardner, and Brittany Arp submitted projects to answer the prompt, “How can you change the world?” Alex and Grant teamed up to create a photographic presentation which they titled, “One Adventure at a Time.” The group formed by Allie, Kayla, Alisen, Amber, and Brittany produced a video that showed how “One Small Act” can change the world. They enlisted the help of other students and journalism adviser, Miss Howe, to star in their video. Neither group’s submission took home any awards, but the club brought home plenty of free cookies from the event. Students in journalism one, two, and three could attend, although several opted out. The CommDay events that our students were part of included workshops as well as the competition. Workshops focused on social media, broadcasting, writing, and photography, and each was very beneficial to our students as journalists. Overall, the event was educational and exciting, despite all of the snoozing on the ride to the university.

The Squire also returned to Edinboro University’s annual High School Journalism Day on April 8. Students listened to speakers from local news and media, had the option to attend two different workshops, were provided a luncheon while listening to a keynote speaker, and stayed for part of the awards ceremony at the end of the day. The opening speaker was Kevin Kleps, assistant editor of Crain’s Cleveland Business. He spoke on the importance of having a diverse skill set and going out of your comfort zone. The workshops related to “Public Relations and the Media” and “Career Opportunitites in Sports Journalism.” The PR workshop was held with Kim Thomas, the Northwest Regional Director, PA Department of Community and Economic Development, and Marissa Orbanek, Public Relations Manager, General McClane School District. The panelists for the Sports Journaism seminar were Sports Director for WJET/FOX 66/YourErie.com, Craig Smylie, and Sports Editor for The Meadville Tribune, Pete Chiodo. Meanwhile, the editors and adviser for The Squire met with Edinboro communications staff to discuss possible improvements to be made to the program. Afterwards, lunch was served and the keynote speaker, Baltimore reporter for WBAL-TV, Vanessa Herring spoke on her experiences as a freelance journalist, on-air reporter, and on the importance of phrasing when reporting and diversity in the media. Unfortunately, The Squire could not stay for the awards ceremony due to time constraints, and returned to the school. Overall, the event was a positive experience for the students, who were able to learn about building on their journalistic skills, and it gave the program a chance to grow and improve.